"Sport Science: QB Combine Special" will examine the reaction time, speed and accuracy of Taylor and six other signal-callers who are draft prospects, including Florida State's Christian Ponder, Arkansas' Ryan Mallett and TCU's Andy Dalton.

The players were brought to ESPN's "Sport Science" studio in California so they could be tracked by high-tech software.

"There's a series of drills that we put all these quarterbacks through, and we're able to get a good sense of the velocity of the ball as it [leaves] their hands, how fast they're able to react to particular things that take place," said Malhotra, also the executive producer of that special.

"Tyrod is a very interesting quarterback to measure and look at. We tried to find a diverse group of playing styles."

Series starting next week...

Quote:

Tyrod Taylor is not one of the top prospects in the NFL Draft, but he's still going to be getting plenty of TV exposure.

ESPN selected the Virginia Tech quarterback as one of three NFL hopefuls it will be profiling in a three-part series which begins next week, "Three for the Show."

The other players in the series are Auburn quarterback Cam Newton and Washington signal-caller Jake Locker. Taylor will be part of each hourlong episode of the series, as will the other two.

The series debuts at 8 p.m. Tuesday, and will continue the following two Tuesdays. The first two episodes show the quarterbacks preparing for the draft, while the final episode will include what happens to them in the draft.

"There's a lot of good behind-the-scenes, compelling stuff," executive producer Vinnie Malhotra said. "We're really trying to look at this experience and this process through Tyrod's eyes and through the people that are kind of his inner circle of family, friends, agent.

"What we're able to provide in 'Three for the Show,' with the access that we have to Tyrod, is what you cannot see anywhere else -- that very intimate portrait of a man going through the most pivotal time in his career."

Newton might be the first pick in the draft, and Locker is expected to go later in the first round. Taylor, though, is not expected to be taken until the final day of the draft, which will be held April 28-30.

But ESPN included Taylor in the series to show a different type of prospect.

Taylor is the "underdog" of the series, said Malhotra, as he tries to prove he is an NFL quarterback while not getting the buzz of some other players in the draft.

"Initially when we were looking at the series, we were kind of focused on the bigger-name quarterbacks," Malhotra said. "As we started to talk more and more about it, we realized there are a lot of very successful quarterbacks out there who are not, for one reason or another, being considered in the first round and have a very different approach to the draft. So what we really wanted to do was find a group of quarterbacks to follow that have very different experiences leading into the draft.

"Tyrod was an incredibly successful college quarterback, ... yet people were talking about Tyrod Taylor as potentially a wide receiver. There's so many questions around, 'Can Tyrod Taylor play quarterback in the NFL?' That's part of his story. It's something he has to constantly combat."

The first episode introduces Taylor and his parents. It will also depict his final college game, the Orange Bowl loss to Stanford. He had a memorable touchdown pass in that game.

"You'll have some very great moments from the bowl game against Stanford where you feel like you're almost on the field," Malhotra said.

The series also will show Taylor training in Atlanta, as well as his audition at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis.

"He's been incredibly open," Malhotra said. "The time period has been captured in a very genuine, authentic ... way.

"Viewers will get an opportunity to see that physically preparing yourself, as well as mentally preparing yourself, for the NFL is a very grueling and long process."

As a senior last season, the 6-foot-1 Taylor completed 188 of 315 passes for 2,743 yards and 24 touchdowns with five interceptions. He also ran for 659 yards and 5 TDs.

LMAO, yeah I thought about you in the last ten minute segment. I see the two together and honestly they didn't look very different, which would be a good thing for TT's stock.

FWIW, I think TT has shown as well as he can leading up to the draft. Most recent rumor I heard was Jax showing pretty heavy interest. I also think his agent has done a great job pointing out how well he's shown, yet continues to get completely overlooked.

If Philly does wind up trading Kolb, Taylor would be a good pickup there. I was listening to Football Today's Matt Williamson talking about the Eagles QB quandary in that Andy Reid prefers the more traditional pocket passer like a Kolb or Mike Kafka, but he's had all of his success with more athletic guys like McNabb and Vick, non-traditional pocket guys. So if you put Taylor as the No. 3, it would at least give him the option to have both down the road.

Tyrod Taylor staking his claim for backup jobAfter watching Tyrod Taylor throw earlier in the season, I thought he could be the Ravens' No. 3 quarterback, or possibly be placed on the practice squad. Now, after three preseason games, I understand why the Ravens are considering making him the backup to starter Joe Flacco.

If the Ravens can land a quality backup with experience, then that's the move they should make. But barring any last-minute cuts, there doesn't seem to be anyone out there head and shoulders above Taylor, or someone you can't pick up later in the season if needed.

Initially, Taylor was overstriding on his passes, causing them to sail. That's probably because he was trying to compensate for his lack of height and trying to make quick reads. But in the past three weeks, he has shown good accuracy. We're aware of his ability to make plays, but if you want to succeed in the league, you have to be accurate, and that's something that can't be taught.

Besides the great athleticism, the kid learns extremely fast and is coachable. Often, we've heard the comparisons to Troy Smith, but this kid is way ahead of Smith, especially his attitude.

The Ravens are high on Taylor, but some other front-office personnel around the league have begun to like him as well.

If Flacco does get hurt, especially for a short time, you want a quarterback who can improvise, a player who can make something out of nothing. It will be interesting to see how Taylor plays tomorrow against the Falcons, if the Ravens play him at all. There will be a lot of tense moments over the weekend when the Ravens and other NFL teams have to make decisions on personnel, especially backup quarterbacks.

But if the Ravens don't bring in another backup, I won't mind. Taylor has been impressive.

It's good to hear about that progress over the course of camp. That usually is a very good sign. Baltimore is looking to shape up to be an ideal place for him to develop.

Perhaps David Garrard would be a better comparison at this point than Smith. Although Garrard isn't exactly considered to be the league's best worker either, one wonders if like Garrard after a couple of years on the bench, and shining in spot starts will Taylor get a more permanent opportunity to be a starter than Smith has to date.

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